As I wrote just over a year ago in a 2-part feature on How To Be A Coverblogger [ Pt. 1 / Pt. 2 ], keeping a coverblog requires a touch of obsession, an itch to live the writing life, and a willingness to keep a keen eye on a select handful of trusted sources. But though we watch the other coverbloggers carefully throughout the year, we are folkies first and foremost here at Cover Lay Down. And - as we noted atop our year's end mix - some of the [...]
Running a music festival in this economy is a real challenge, but after a weekend with friends and co-coordinators of the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival , I'm proud to announce that once again we're rarin' to go for yet another wild weekend of singer-songwriter, folk rock, world music, and folk-pop. Add in the proverbial mix of friends, vendors, kid-friendly fare, hilltop up-and-comers in the label and coffeehouse-sponsored tents all night long, and dancing 'til the wee hours, and as always, Falcon Ridge 2010 is shaping up to be the best time I'm planning on having all [...]
Dear confused readers: yes, this is the second time I've posted this one. Despite what I believe to be full and explicit permission to share the songs referenced below -- permission received directly from each of the artists referenced herein, after in-person discussion over the summer -- sometime today, blogger axed the original version of this post. Though I'm not happy about it, I can't really blame blogger. However deplorable, the current, horrible, draconian copyright laws in the US are quite clear: under DMCA, any take-down complaint, regardless of legitimacy or origin, must [...]
Dear confused readers: yes, this is the second time I've posted this one. Despite what I believe to be full and explicit permission to share the songs referenced below - permission received directly from each of the artists referenced herein, after in-person discussion over the summer - sometime today, blogger axed the original version of this post. Though I'm not happy about it, I can't really blame blogger. However deplorable, the current, horrible, draconian copyright laws in the US are quite clear: under DMCA, any take-down complaint, regardless of legitimacy or origin, must [...]
Been thinking about Falcon Ridge Folk Festival this week. Some of this is seasonal -- there's an inevitable longing for summer, now that the world around us has changed from green to gold. But mostly I'm in the mood because this weekend marks the annual Crew Chiefs meeting, and that means 24 hours of househopping with dozens of dear and drunken friends, serious partying across state lines, and a sharing-and-strategy session to recreate the best damn place on earth with some pretty committed volunteers. It will be my [...]
Given how familiar their greatest hits are, it's startling to find so few Supertramp covers out there. Perhaps it's the lack of authenticity afforded a band which was, after all, formed not out of some sense of artistic urgency, but on a millionaire patron's whim , which fueled then-unknown singer-songwriter Rick Davies' classified ad in popular industry mag Melody Maker. Perhaps it's the prog-rock era itself, its orchestral, larger-than-life poses shunned as anathema to the modern post-slacker indie generation and their hushed, lo-fi alt-folk bedroom output. Maybe it's just the hair. [...]
Gee, but it's great to be back home. And bearing gifts, including an exclusive live Beatles tribute concert, recorded this past Friday in a sunny field in Hillsdale, NY, which you'll find just down below. But first, the weather report: Regular readers may remember that I'd hoped to have a Utah Phillips tribute set to share today. Unfortunately, a freak hurricane-force thunder-and-hailstorm and torrential downpour mid-afternoon on Sunday brought several major event-sized tents down, flooding roads and washing away tentsites, soaking sound equipment, and generally [...]
Usually you can trust that these daily recommendations are coming directly from me. Whether you like them or not the referral is coming straight from this horses mouth with little influence from the wider marketplace, pr machines or record labels. But today's post on Joe Crookston comes courtesy of Falcon Ridge Folk Festival and their emerging artist showcase. The festival handpicks a couple of artists to be both their representatives and goodwill ambassadors. They tour together in advance of the fest and then play that weekend. Joe Crookston combines startlingly nimble guitar [...]
Cover Lay Down
Keep the Coffee Coming
songsillinois
Antony and the Johnsons - "Rise"
Santigold – The Keepers (Duke Dumont Remix)
